## UPDATE 2011 ## This review was initially for the LFH0660/10 – this has been replaced in Australia in 2010 by the new model LFH0617/00. The software is the same, the recorder included in the pack is different. The Dragon NaturallySpeaking DVR (Digital Voice Recorder) Edition now contains the LFH0612 Philips digital voice tracer. The below review is still relevant, the software is setup and trained the same way with the new pack.

Released mid 2009 in Australia in a joint venture between Philips Dictation and Nuance was the Philips Dragon NaturallySpeaking Voice Recorder Edition (LFH0660/10) at an incredibly cheap price of RRP AU$259.00 incl. GST. At that price it certainly makes you sit up and pay attention, after all the package contains Dragon NaturallySpeaking v10 and a very competent Philips Digital VoiceTracer 660.

Not much to say about the Philips DVT 660, a great little recorder, perfect for single speaker audio. The 660 records in MP3 format and like all recorders has multiple recording modes (tip: always use the highest quality recording mode, SHQ on the DVT 660). This is a note taker not a dictaphone so you are not able to rewind/review your audio just simply record and stop, although you can pause during recordings. The recorder has 1Gb of in-built flash memory, can be powered by two AAA batteries or by USB and can record on the highest quality audio setting for 17.5 hours.Included in the box is version 10 of Dragon NaturallySpeaking (Windows only) which uses the latest Dragon speech recognition engine, this is a drastically cut down version of the software so does not include features that you would see in the Standard or Preferred edition, hence the cut down price. The recognition engine though is the same so no skimping on the quality of the speech recognition.

The aim of the Digital Voice Recorder Edition is to allow people to dictate into their digital voice recorder for later transcription by the Dragon NaturallySpeaking software. The user does not need be in the office and in front of their computer while dictating, therefore gives them the freedom to record dictation whenever and wherever they want, which of course is very convenient. Because the software is a cut down version you can not directly talk to the software using a headset and mic as you can with the Standard or Preferred versions, the software will only transcribe audio from a digital recording. Now this does not have to be a recording made on the 660, any recording in the audio format .mp3, .wav or .dss can be used. The software can be configured for multiple user profiles (or speakers) so if you have a number of people in the office all with a digital voice recorder that records in a compatible audio format they could all use one installed copy of the software, once they have trained their profile to their voice.

Installation of the software is quick and easy and you are guided through each step of the install with clear and precise instructions, normal with any Dragon NaturallySpeaking install. When installation is complete you are presented with a selection of eight transcripts, any one of which you are required to read for your initial voice training. To do this read your preferred transcript and record your voice using the Philips VoiceTracer 660. This must be recorded into one single digital audio file and not split over multiple files. You have the option to display the transcripts on the screen or print them.

The selection of eight voice training transcripts to read are:

3001 – The Final Odyssey (Harder Reading – Science Fiction)

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (Reading for Teens – Fantasy)

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Reading for Teens – Adventure)

Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator (Reading for Teens – Adventure)

Dave Barry in Cyberspace (Medium Reading – Humour)

Dogberts Top Secret Management Handbook (Harder Reading – Humour)

Success is a Journey (Medium Reading – Business Philosophy)

The Captain of Battery Park (Reading for Teens – Adventure)

I suggest you print one then take yourself away somewhere comfortable to sit and read the transcript while recording your voice with the digital voice recorder.

Tips when recording your first voice training transcript:

Speak in your normal voice but make sure your speak clearly.

Speak at your normal speech rate, do not rush or speak too slowly.

Make sure the digital voice recorder is set to SHQ recording mode.

Take some time to understand how the voice recorder works before you begin. You can pause during the recording of reading the transcript, work out how to do this before your start.

Record the audio somewhere quiet, not at a cafe or in a busy office with phones ringing and people talking around you.

Have a glass of water handy and take some sips if and when your pause recording, helps keep your audio clear.

Do not dictate punctuation.

I was interrupted a couple of times in my office while recording my voice training transcript hence the tip for learning how to pause the recording. Training the software to recognise your voice and more importantly the way you speak is key to the success of this software and ultimatly your user experience with it. Be warned the selection of transcripts can take some time. For my voice training I selected “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” which took just over twenty minutes to record (with a couple of interruptions).

Once you have completed the recording of your voice training audio connect the digital voice recorder to your PC via USB. Then select the location of the audio file which by default is in Folder A on the voice recorder unless your specifically selected another folder prior to recording. By default the software looks for a file called in.wav, simply browse to the voice recorder and select the recording you just made:

Dragon NaturallySpeaking will transfer a copy of the audio from the recorder to a temporary folder on your PC where it will verify the audio. Verification checks the audio quality and clarity of your recording as well as the signal to noise ratio. If all is good Dragon NaturallySpeaking will identify which one of the eight transcripts you chose to read, as you can see from the image below “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” was identified, click next and the real work begins. Dragon will process your audio against the transcript and work out how you speak and how you sound.

Verification of the audio can take up to an hour, for me it only took around 20 minutes until the process was complete. Nearly finished, hang in there…. Finally you have the option of having Dragon NaturallySpeaking analyse your writing style, the software can look at your email (Microsoft Outlook, Outlook Express or Lotus Notes) and your documents (Microsoft Word, Text and Rich Text files) and adapt to your writing style. This helps Dragon NaturallySpeaking produce documents in your style of writing, this part can be skipped.

That completes the voice training and initial setup for Dragon NaturallySpeaking Digital Voice Recorder Edition. It is recommended that when you have time in the future you work your way through the other seven voice training transcripts, that helps Dragon fully analyse the way you speak and enunciate your words.

You are now free to record dictation to your Philips DVT 660 and request Dragon to transcribe the audio for you. You will need to include punctuation as you dictate, “new paragraph”, “new line”, “full stop” and so on otherwise your transcript will be one long sentence in one long paragraph. I found this out when I decided to get Dragon to transcribe my voice training transcript, below is a screen shot of Dragon NaturallySpeaking in action transcribing my training dictation:

You will still need to proof your transcribed audio however the whole exercise will still be alot quicker than typing the audio yourself.

Remember, this software only works for one person dictation. You can not record an interview or meeting and have Dragon transcribe it for you. You should not even attempt this as other voices will change your voice profile and affect the accuracy of transcription. For multi speaker audio you need your own on-site transcriptionist or outsource your digital audio to Australia’s leading online transcription service – The Transcription People.

So to sum up, I was actually very impressed by the ease of use of the software and the transcription accuracy. I am very used to using Dragon NaturallySpeaking Preferred using a headset and mic so just recording into a voice recorder put me a little out of my comfort zone but for people who are used to talking into a voice recorder they will be very comfortable with the whole process. There is minimal effort to proof your completed transcription and the speed of transcription will easily beat the fastest typist.

Pros:

Cost effective, very cheap for excellent software and a quality voice recorder.

Easy to use software and digital voice recorder.

Fast, accurate transcription for single speaker dictation.

Software can have multiple user profiles so anyone with a voice recorder can have their dictation transcribed.

Cons:

Document has to be proofed post transcription and not in real time as with Standard or Preferred Editions.

I already have a voice recorder capable of recording DSS. I’ve been using a transcription service for some time and am used to dictating and the need to edit/revise when the document is returned. I’d rather not buy a new dictaphone/VR if not necessary. Given that, can one use a DSS/MP3/WAV file in the Standard or Preferred editions and should one buy one of those instead and which one would you recommend?

For sure if you have a recorder already that can record in .dss (and also mp3 or wav) then it will be compatible with the Premium and Professional (Dragon NaturallySpeaking 11) or Preferred and Professional (Dragon NaturallySpeaking 10). The Home (DNS11) or Standard (DNS10) versions do not support audio from a digital recorder.

Essentially the choice of version will come down to the processing of your audio and proofreading of your Dragon transcribed documents. With the Pro version you can share your profile, meaning you can give your profile to your transcription service along with your audio. They can then process the audio through Dragon for you (saving you on transcription time) then proof read and apply corrections to the document and more importantly update your profile and return you your completed documents and updated profile. So essentially your transcription costs are reduced as the transcription service only processes the audio and does the proofing.

If you plan to proof your documents and process them through Dragon yourself then go with the Premium or Preferred edition.

Any good transcription service will be able to offer the Dragon process/proof/profile processing of your audio files. We are aligned with The Transcription People in Australia who offer this service. We are also working closely with some of the larger transcription workflow solutions which are more and more including smartphones like the iPhone and Blackberry in their supported device list. Companies like BigHand and iSpeech.

I have Dragon Preferred version 10.1 and am upgrading soon to 11.5. I just bought a new Philips Digital Recorder LH 0617 that came with the DVR Dragon software. Do I need to install the DVR version software? If I do will it remove or change my existing profiles? Thanks

Thanks for your comment. No you do not need to install the DVR version, your Preferred at 10.1 and Premium (once you upgrade to 11.5) will take audio recorded from the Philips recorder without needing the DVR software.

I have just bought this week a new Philips Voice Tracer LFH0865. As I used already Dragon NatSpeak 11.5 I did not buy any other DVR version. Could you confirm if my version will work with my new LFH0865 ? If not what is your best advice ? Thanks

Thanks for your comment. Only the Premium and Professional versions of Dragon NaturallySpeaking 11 or 11.5 will work with a digital voice recorder. The Home edition will not work with a digital voice recorder. So as long as you have the Premium or Pro version you will be fine.

The only other advice I would have given would have been to buy an Olympus digital voice recorder instead of Philips 😉

We are a small medical office who uses our receptionist to transcribe our MP3 audio files. Does the Dragon DVR version attach the audio file to the transcription so the receptionist can listen to the file after it is transcribed in order to proof the document? IF not how does a third party proof the transcription? Also, if corrections are made on the keyboard will the software learn them? Can you download the software on multiple computers so others can proof the documents after transcription? Lastly, can one purchase the Dragon DVR (stripped down version) separately without the phillips recorder?

Thanks for dropping by and for your questions. To be honest you would be better to avoid the Dragon DVR version, that was back in the v10 days, we are now up to v11.5 for NaturallySpeaking and the benefits of having the Premium versions outway looking at the DVR edition – from both a cost and usability point.

By going DNS 11 Premium you will be able to use a headset/mic to dictate directly to your PC and a voice recorder. You may find some users prefer to dictate direct, some may prefer to continue with their voice recorder, at least you have that option.

Once the audio is run through DNS you will have the ability to proof and apply changes to the profile so that the profile learns. The software can not be installed on multiple computers, you will need a licence for each install. But a single install can have multiple profiles.

Now before you jump in you need to work out the version you really need. Both the Premium and Pro can take audio from recorders (and spoken voice). Only the Pro version will let you move around a profile, meaning it can be initially trained by the dictator and then shared with the secretary who then applies audio/proofing to the profile and can send back the profile to the dictator. With the Premium version, the dictator will need to train the profile on the secretaries computer and leave the profile there.

If you need more info on this please email me directly and I can send you the relavent documentation so that you can weigh up the pros and cons.

I use Dragon professional version 11 and want to get a digital voice recorder to use with it in addition to my usual use of Dragon. What would you recommend? I note in one of your comments you suggested an Olympus rather than a Philips. Is there any particular reason for this?
Thanks for your help

Thank you for your comments. Yes I suggest Olympus over Philips because they are better, of course this is my opinion, but I do believe them to be an excellent quality recorder, with Windows and Mac support and an excellent Olympus support network here in Australia from their head office in Ryde, Sydney.

Just about every Olympus recorder will work with Dragon NaturallySpeaking, starting with the WS series recorder and up. How you will talk to your recorder will decide if you should go with a notetaker style recorder (WS & DM series) or a digital dictaphone (DS series). The notetakers are cheaper but are really designed for recording meetings so their audio quality is excellent but they lack the rewind/review functionality of the dictaphones. Dictaphones are designed for one person talking and therefore great for Dragon but are very expensive.

Notetakers can be used effectively with Dragon but you will need to think about your dictation before you start talking. If you need a break while dictating you can pause the recording to gather your thoughts. You can not go back, hear what you said and then continue recording – only the dictaphones have this functionality.

So have a think about your style and which way you should head with a recorder. I tend to steer most towards a notetaker, if I had to choose I would go a WS-750M, then if they love it then have saved a few hundred dollars. If they hate it they have only spent under $200 and have an excellent meeting/interview/conference recorder that I am sure won’t go to waste.

I’m Canadian – I purchase Dragon naturally Speaking 11 (or is it 11.5) yesterday with the LFH0612 Phillips voice Tracer recorder — which no matter what amount of truouble-shooting I do, this Phillips recorder will not emit any sound through its speakers (headphones not in, volume turned up, hold button not on, etc). What is their return policy at nuance? Or tech support? I only need the recorder swapped out or the speaker repaired. Or am i just better off using a different one? I have a voice tracer 660 in my posession. Will it work with DNS 11?

Thanks for your comment. I can’t comment on return policy for Canada as it is likely different to here in Australia. Do you really need the speaker though? As long as the recorder is recording just play back the audio through your PC, you will have to transfer the file to your PC anyway for Dragon to process.

Hi Dave,
I am so pleased I accidently found this forum as I am looking at improving my time managment whilst on the raod. Simply I meet with people and take bullet points which then need to be formally epanded into notes. My plan would be once the meeting is completed I would reocrd my notes into a portable voice reocrder then use dragon to translate into written notes. I cant seem to decide what to get to acheive this. What are your thoughts around me purchasing a
Olympus WS-750M price quotes $123.00 and
The Dragon Dictate Dragon Naturally Speaking Home V11.0 For Windows price $88? this seemes rather cheap?

First of all, do not get Dragon Home. This edition can not take audio from a recording of your voice, you will need to step upto Dragon Premium for this functionality.

Yes the WS-750M is an excellent recorder. The key when recording for Dragon is minimal to no background noise and clear diction. I would recommend you also grab a noise cancelling mic to go with your Olympus – like the Olympus ME-12.

Great feedback Dave.
Sorry more questions! What are your thoughts around the Olympus M-15 mic which has tie clip as ideally I would like to be hands free when recording.
Is there any reason why there is such a price difference when searching for the Dragon Premium? Who should I trust to purchase from and can I view the product before purchase anywhere? I live in Adelaide.
Regards
Noelene

Yes that mic would also help, essentially any mic that can cut background noise and grab good clear recording of your diction will help. I just check the the Nuance compatibility index for the WS-750M and without a mic it gets a 4 out of 4 rating which is still very good.

As for the price swing, you will probably find the really cheap Dragon have come from overseas and are imported. My company is a Gold Certified Nuance Australia dealership, we can only source our software from Australia so our pricing will be similar to other Aussie dealers. There is always a risk that the licence key with the cheaper versions is already used or ties to another country, which will make things difficulty if and when you need support. A good indicator for price is OfficeWorks – they sell Dragon at RRP so anyone who sells around that price would likely be a legit Australian reseller.

Hi Dave Just when I am about to order from you there appears to be only one mic available for purchase on Dictate Australia, Olympus TP-7 – Telephone Pickup Mic 1x $39.00, I was looking to purchase the M-15. As my intention is to work in a hand free environment I don’t think the TP-7 is suitable if I am not on the phone?
Also the WS-750M is for sale at linelink for $123 compared to $169 at Dictate. Do you price match?.
Regards
Noelene

Hi Dave
I thought I would drop you a line to say this product is better than one could have ever expected. Fantastic! Saving lots of time and the accuracy improves each time I use it not that there is a lot to correct. Thank you for your fantastic advice and great customer service.

Well your problem is your recorder, without the recorder you are unable to record your voice and pass the recorded audio to Dragon DVR edition. Maybe check the batteries for charge and also that they are in the correct way around. If the recorder has a hold switch make sure that is off.

Dragon will work with audio files recorded on other recorders. Essentially if you can record high quality/low background noise in the formats compatible with Dragon you will still be able to use the software. Compatible formats are .WAV, .MP3 and .WMA from memory.

Also – you should really be looking at the latest edition of Dragon which is 11.5 and in particular the Premium Edition which will let you both talk directly to Dragon via a microphone or you can play recordings of your voice into Dragon.

Essentially yes you are correct – a notetaker is typically used for recording something with a defined start time and defined end time without stopping and starting – like a meeting or interview. A digital dictaphone replaces the old style tape recorders so you can stop and start recording your dictation, you can rewind and hear what you last said and then continue recording and with digital you can erase sections of audio and insert sections of audio. Dictatphones are typically used by one person dictating although the latest Olympus dictaphones can also record small meetings.

In order for Dragon to work, I have to record my voice using one of the transcripts above. If I am using my dicaphone for recording lectures in school, then I would not be able to use Dragon as I have different professors. Is that correct

Dragon will only transcribe your voice, trained using the sample scripts that you are seeing in this post – this is for the DVR (digital voice recorder) edition. You are correct that it will not work with you recording your various professors and using that to play into Dragon. The DVR edition is an older version of Dragon – look now for Dragon NaturallySpeaking version 11.5 which comes in Home, Premium or Pro editions. If you want to use Dragon as a tool to help you write essays or thesis then Home or Premium would be the editions for you.

is it possible to transcribe an .wma or .mp3 dictation file to text? But I mean without reading the interview again in an microphone.

So a kind of software that can ‘read’ the mp3 or wma file and what is said inside the mp3/wma write it in Word.

But for Dutch (The Netherlands) language.

But the persons talking in the interview is not myself….will it still transcribe the conversation between them to a Word document? Because I read something about having to ‘train’ the voice that is wanted to be transcribed? But I can’t ask the person(s) who is/are interviewed to go through an whole voice training session….haha

Reading your question it was looking so good and possible until I reached the ‘But’s … So yes Dragon can transcribe audio from .wma or .mp3 if you have the Premium or Pro version of NaturallySpeaking for Windows. Dragon Dictate for Mac will not transcribe audio (yet).

So then we come to the But’s. The first But – Dutch. Sorry, Dutch as language is not yet available. The second But, interviews. This is also a no. Dragon can only transcribe audio of a trained voice. This means that it can not transcribe audio for more than one speaker, like in an interview or a meeting. Essentially only the person who has trained Dragon can make recordings of only his or her voice for playback and transcription into Dragon. Have a read of this blog post where I have covered the question of can Dragon transcribe meetings or interviews.

I write fiction and have considered, several times, getting a digital voice recorder and some transcription software.

I was going to buy Dragon Naturally Speaking with support for digital voice recorder but just discovered that it’s possible to get, say, an Olympus recorder bundled with the Recorder version of DNS v11.

Would that be such a bad choice? I notice you suggested a while ago that it would be better to go for the Pro Edition of DNS but that would be significantly more expensive and I’m really not sure I need the added functionality.

I’d be the sole user of the voice recorder, I’ve no interest in interviewing anybody, just talking (mostly garbage 🙂 ) into the recorder. I imagine that at least 98% of the content would get edited out as soon as I had it in text format. Just looking for a quick/easy way of getting thoughts out of my head and onto the page.

I’ve no interest in controlling my computer via voice or dictating into other applications. In fact, the whole point of using a recorder as a writing aid is to get away from my computer. (I realise I could still do that if I had the Pro Edition + voice recorder.)

Thanks for your comment. I am still not a fan of the “voice recorder” edition of Dragon, here in AU we only have the Philips bundle but I do know that an Olympus bundle is also available outside of AU. For what you have described as doing then yep the bundle would be good. The voice recorder edition you commented on was a cut down version of Dragon, I’m pretty sure the bundle you are looking at is Dragon Premium version with a voice recorder added. That is perfect for you, you will be able to mutter endlessly into the recorder and have Dragon transcribe it. But the best bit, which is where is beats the older Voice Recorder edition, is that you can also use Dragon on your PC with a good USB noise cancelling mic to talk direct to your PC and have Dragon transcribe it. For people who write I honestly think you will love that more than recording your voice and transcribing later.

Avoid the Pro version, as you have said its pricey and does a whole lot of stuff you don’t need. Premium with an Olympus recorder is the way to go.

I recently bought the Dragon Naturally Speaking Recorder thinking it would be great to transcribe interviews our TV producers do in the field. So far it is not working as expected. Maybe I misunderstood, but my thinking was the recorder would record the person being interviewed and then transcribe it into text when producers return to our TV station. It is not doing this now, and I am unsure if it capable of doing this, or if we are doing something wrong. Help? Thanks.